In order to track Ndelie the collar is fitted with:

1. A Global Positioning System (GPS) unit that calculates the exact location of the collar
2. A memory that stores the location information on the collar
3. An Iridium satellite transceiver that is used to send or receive data wherever the collar might be in the world.

What does “Ndelie” mean?

Ndelie is a Maasai word that means “cooking pot”. The Lion Guardians that assisted with the capture of Ndelie felt that the spread of his paws were roughly equivalent to the diameter of a cooking pot.

Where did we get this collar?

The collar was loaned to us by Vectronic Aerospace and is a “GPS Plus Iridium-3”model. Its been designed to use the 66 Iridium low-earth-orbit satellites. The collar will automatically transmit its location using the satellite network. In the unusual event that there is no coverage, the collar will attempt to resend the data later. New schedules or advanced configurations can be uploaded via the satellite network too. If you have technical questions about the collar, or would like one for your pet cat, bear, moose, musk ox, elephant, etc then please email  Vectronic Aerospace or visit their website.

How could you, as a non-profit organisation afford to use this equipment and construct this website?

The collar is a donation from the manufacturer (see above). We are only paying for the subscription to the data feed. This site was built entirely from free software. The server storage space has been donated, and the development of the site was carried out by volunteers.

What is the point of this site?

This site is to be used as a tool to inform conservationists across the ecosystem of lion presence quickly and efficiently. It is also our way of showing the world what we’re doing, and to appeal for donations for our research and community-based conservation initiatives. If you like what you see, read more about the lions of Maasailand here, and consider hitting the donate button!